Chapter 16 - Unmanned Aircraft Systems

Abstract

Unmanned aviation may appear to be a recent development, but its history stretches back to the beginnings of aviation. The first unmanned glider flew a century before the Wright Flyer, and unpiloted, powered aircraft made their appearance in the first decades of the 20th century. Over the last 100 years, a series of technological innovations have expanded the capabilities of unmanned aircraft to the point where they now fulfill an increasing range of civilian and military roles. The central message of this chapter is that the further development of unmanned aviation may be held back more by a lack of attention to human factors than by technological hurdles. This chapter begins with a brief overview of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), from their historical beginnings to the present. Next, the accident record of unmanned aviation is reviewed. The emerging human factors of UAS operation are then examined under the broad headings of teleoperation, design of the ground control station (GCS), transfer of control, airspace issues, and maintenance. If unmanned systems are to reach their full potential, it will be necessary to address each of these issues.